Tracker.



'I'. P. BROWN.

TRACKER. APPLICATION FILED DBO. 6, 1907.

PatenteaNov. 3, 1908.

jbe used on the new instruments.

y 'UNrrnn srrirns PATENT onirica.

THEODOHE P. BROWN, OF WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO THE SIMPLEX PIANO PLAYER- CO., OF WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS7 A CORPORATION OF MASSACHUSETTS.

TRACKER.

Application filed December 6. 1907. Serial No. 405,306

.To all whom it may concern: Be it. known that I, Trinononr: P. BROWN,

VorCeSer, in the county of loi-rester Yand State of Aflassachusetts, have invented a new Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented rromvahieoe,v

' and. 121. T he channels of each of these sets l are separated from each other by spaces a citizen of the United States, residing-r at andl useful Tracker, of which th(` following is j .a s ecification. s

, which are preferably sta piano,but of'late, it has been thought desirable to provide means .whereby the whole eighty-eight notes 4may be sounded. 1n

order to do this, it is of course necessary to provlde a tracker wlth eighty-eight note l channels instead of sixty-five and to connect them up in away similar tc what has been done before. that entirelynew sets of notev sheets will have to be provided andthe old ones cannot The main objection to this is,

AIn order to avoidthis, several propositions have been made for providing tracker bars with two or A more sets of channels so that note sheets constructed to control `different numbers of 'notes on, the instrument may be used on the same device.

. tion is -to provide improved means whereby :hannels 13.

which are of substantially the same length as the channels themselves, at least not shorter than the channels.

The nualiber of channels in each set may he varied at will, 1out the invention. is illustrated t 1s well known that automatic musical as ap'iflied to an instrument in which there are sixty-five channels 12 and eighty-eight The channels 12 are connected up inV the usual way by tubes er passages 16 gered in order to getV them inte-the small space provided in the traclnn'.A vThe channels 13 are similarly connected by tubesor passages 17 with the tubes or passages 16 so far as' may be permitted by the number ef the latter. In other words, sixty-'live of the channels 13 which correspond with the sixty-'live eliannels 12 are connected with them so as to produce the l same striking e'dect.

Of couise-tlie,re are twenty-three additional channels 13 which are not connected with any of the channels 12 but which are connected with pneumatic actions in the usual or any desired way.

Now, in order to provide for controlling` vthe two sets of channels, a pair ef reciprocahle slides L and 41 are employed. These slides g preferably :nove longitudinally with respect The principal object pf the present inveni aplurality of different kinds of note sheets mechanism for opening and closing the two 1 may be V used on the same instrument, the

or more sets of note channels being located outof sight, preferably within the tracker,

lnot readily be noticerhand to provide 'an exceedingly simple and inexpensive arrange ment for alternately opening the several sets of note channels.

Further objects and advantages of the invention will appear hereinafter.

Reference is to be had" to the accompany- :ing drawings which show one form in which the .invention may be carried out and in which, 5

,Figure 1 isa front elevation of the end of a `tracker box showing a preferred form of the invention. Fig. l2 is a transverse sectional view of the same.

In order to accomplish the desired result,

f the tracker box 10 is provided with a tracker to the tracker so that they may be located in a convenient position and may be so constructed. as to take up very little space. The slide 40 is .provided with perforations 42 corresponding with the channels 12. In the same way, the slide 41 is provided with perg ferations 43 correspendingV with the tubes 17. orat any rate,vin such position that it will Ther-care also spaces 441 and 45 between the several perforations 42 and 43 respectively,

vthese spaces being; at least as long as the pereither case be operated independently, but it ispreferred to operate them together so that when' one is moved to close one set cfpassages the other will' be' moved to -open the other. For this purpose a'lever'48lis con-- nected with the two slides, being housed with'- in the tracker' and being pivoted between them, one arm of the lever beinglo'nger than the other for the same purpose as above.' When one slide is moved inone direction, the

other is thereby caused to move in the opposite direction in the form shown. In this case, also, no other mechanism need be einpleyed for moving them as they can be reciprocated by `means of thumb notches 50 in their front sides. a-The sides 51 of the tracker bex, ni ay conveniently serve as stops to prevent the slides moving beyonda certain point and to avoid the-necessity of adjusting them each time they are shifted.

' A pensive.

It will be seenv that this invention is capable of being carried out 1n a very simple way so as to avoid' any complicated mechanisml such as has been used heretofore and also to avoid cha urging the appearance of the tracker itself. Ilurthermcre,the constructions which can be employed. for ha'rrying out the invention are very simple in form and inex- It is to be observed, also, that a portion of the invention may be used even on ordinary instruments whichv do not have double trackers, 'aone of the slides can be employed alone to open and close the channels of an ordinary tracker vwhen it is.desired to prevent thc `operation ofy an instrument which has to be left 1n a public place. l The mechanism 1s so slmple that 1t can be entirely hidden from view and'persons un accustomed to 'the particular instrument wouldynot he able to operate it if the instrument were left with the channels closed.

While I have illustrated and described a preferred form ofthe invention, I am aware that many modifications may' be made `therein by anyperson skilled in the art Without departing from the scope of the invention as expressed in the claims; 'Therefore, I do not wish to be limited to the particular form shown, but A What I do claim and desire to secureby Letters-Patent is:-

1. A tracker for a musical instrument having two sets of channels and .provided with a pair oi 'longitudinally,reciprocable slides dove-tailed into the front of the tracker, said slides having passages communicating with in one direction the other willbemoved. in.

the opposite direction. 3. n a tracker, the combination cfa block having tracker channels therethrough, a pair of slides dove-tailedl into the front thereof and Hush with thefront surface of the tracker,

said slides having notches in their -iront surfaces, Whereby they may be .manipulated by hand from the front of the tracker, and means inside the tracker for moving one slide when the other is reciprocated.

4.' In a tracker the combination of a bl0ck`l ywith said channels, means whereby said slides can be manipulated from the iront. and a lever pivoted near the front of said tracker back of said slides and pivotally connected with said slides, whereby said slides will be caused to reciprocate simultaneously.

5. The combination with a tracker, of a block having tracker channels therethrough, a pair of slides fiush with the iront surfaces of the tracker, said slides having means whereby they may be manipulated by hand from the front of the tracker, and means vinside the tracker for moving one slide when the other is re-ciprocated.

6. A tracker having channels therein, a pair ofslides adapted to close said channels,

.said slides having means whereby they may .be manipulated `y hand, and means inside .the tracker for moving one slide when the other is moved.

' 7. 4A tracker for a musical instrument, having channels. and provided with a longitudinally reciprocable slide'dove-tailed into the yfront lof the tracker flush with the front surface thereof, said slide having passages communicating with the channels:

8. A tracker for a musical instrument, having channels and provided with a longitudinally reciprocable slide dove-tailed into the front of the tracker flush with the front sur-- facethereof, said slide having passages communicating with the. channels and said tracker ,having spaces for limiting the motion of said slide in the position in which said vpassages register with the channels.

l). A tracker having channels therein, a

pair of slides adapted to close said channels,

my hand, in the presence of two subscribing witnesses. v

THEODORE P. BROWN.

Witnesses:

ALBERT E. FAY, RUFUS B. DODGE, Jr. 

